Joseph Dunn, a former state senator from Orange County, was ousted as executive director of the State Bar of California but he isn’t letting that go. He has sued the lawyer’s group, saying he was fired because he tried to expose “egregious improprieties” by bar officials, according to the L.A. Times.

Dunn ran the State Bar from 2010 until last week, when he said he was fired without explanation. The bar announced his departure Thursday, shortly before Dunn filed his suit in Los Angeles Superior Court.

Dunn represented central Orange County from 1998 to 2006, and won national acclaim for leading the state senate’s investigation into Enron’s nefarious role in the 2000-2001 energy crisis, according to the OC Weekly. Continue reading→

22. JANET NGUYEN Amazingly, this is Janet Nguyen’s first time on this list, despite a career swarming with scary accomplishments. We’re finally convinced she might be an actual vampire. Think about it: Her social sensibilities are centuries old. She somehow hypnotizes thousands of people to vote for her despite having no accomplishments or fan base. There’s barely any garlic in her Stanton sandwich shop, and somehow, she’s semi-successfully running for state Senate against Jose Solorio despite her mismanagement of CalOptima, Orange County’s medical-care program for the poor and elderly. Supporters are currently under investigation for alleged money laundering to fund her Board of Supervisors campaigns. Has anyone ever seen her wear silver? Mitigating Factor: Nguyen’s the only person capable of killing the werewolf that is Van Thai Tran.

Late this afternoon, Thy Vo at the Voice nailed SD1 County Supervisor Janet Nguyen, who is running for the 34th State Senate District against Democrat Jose Solorio, with this news about her campaign funders: Six Nguyen Donors Admit to Political Money Laundering. Their lead:

Six donors to County Supervisor Janet Nguyen have admitted to illegally receiving reimbursements for campaign contributions, according to newly obtained documents from the state’s Fair Political Practices Commission by Voice of OC.

SD34 Candidate Janet Nguyen needs to be reminded when she points a finger at someone, there are four others pointing back at her.

The campaign mailer above to the 34th Senate District she and Jose Solorio are running for hit today. Nguyen’s team is associating Solorio, a former State Assemblyman who’s not been in Sacramento for two years since he was termed out, with four Senate Democrat scoundrels. Solorio’s response is easy: Supervisor Nguyen’s Fundraising Attracts Scrutiny of the FBI as published in March by the union-funded Voice of OC. Writers Norberto Santana, Jr. and Tracy Wood can be trusted as much or more than the Register. Their lead: Continue reading→

Irvine can replace the union-hostaged OC Fire Authority

Irvine Councilmembers Jeff Lalloway and Christina Shea have just been handed a great opportunity to turn lemons into lemonade and prove that their city can actually run something like a business. With the Great Park debacle not taking any of the DA’s time but consuming headlines, reputations and, hopefully, Larry Agran’s re-election campaign (Beth Krom will not be running for Mayor), this hit last week on Irvine certainly wasn’t welcome:

Per the OC Register on 8/7: An Orange County Superior Court judge has ruled against the Orange County Fire Authority’s plan to return millions of dollars to cities that overpaid for firefighting service, dealing a blow to the agency’s efforts to appease communities that have threatened to leave the fire authority if they aren’t reimbursed. Judge William D. Claster’s ruling backs county leaders’ efforts to prevent the fire authority from paying millions to Irvine, Laguna Woods, Rancho Santa Margarita, San Juan Capistrano and the county, who for years have been overcharged for their fire services. The county argued that the proposed payments to the members would have amounted to a gift of public funds.